Fragments of Light
by TheAngriestFace
Summary: For every legend shared, a thousand stories of brave heroism and tragic loss go on told and unsung. With every mission, a new adventure is told for those who live it. Every Guardian is the captain of their own fate, they control their own destiny against the endless tides of the encroaching Darkness. These are the tales of a few flickers of light that make up the beacon of hope


**Not my normal fandom, but I hope you all enjoy it!**

 **Side note, this chapter and others happen pre Destiny 1 events.**

The Tower. Home for all those who have been remade in the Traveler's Light. Built into The Wall that surrounded the Last City, where countless Guardians come and go for missions, equipment and comradery with one another. A ship approached the large platform on the top of The Tower and paused just long enough to transmat its occupant. Materialising above the platform and then landing on her feet, a Hunter sighed deeply as she pushed her hood off her head and pulled her helmet off her face.

In the morning light, Milah stretched her arms above her head and groaned lightly. She scratched her blue skin before walking over the golden inlaid emblem of the Tower and up the set of stairs. All around her, other Guardians were walking around, conversing and showing off their weapons to each other. "Just another day, eh?" she said with a small smile as she made her way across the Tower Watch, towards the Hall of Guardians to give her report from her last mission.

Descending the stairs, she picked up her pace while raising her hand to block her face from Lord Shaxx, the Crucible handler. The massive Titan was busy yelling at a Warlock, who looked like they were too scared to run to safety as the man in white and orange armour complained about the score he got. Counting her blessings, Milah was glad he was distracted, lest she find herself on the receiving end of some of his _"encouragement"_ to participate in a few Crucible matches.

Arriving at the large set of powered doors that lead to where the Vanguard held their meetings, Milah took a deep breath and pulled her violet bangs over her head and tied them, as well as most of her hair, into a small ponytail, leaving her sides just past her ears. She took another deep breath and turned to her Ghost who was hovering over her shoulder. "Do I look good? Does my hair look okay?" she asked as she nervously made sure she had no loose strands of hair poking out.

"You look fine, Milah..." Her Ghost, Lav, rolled his single eye as he drifted lazily around her head. Her Ghost had a light purple colour to it with a warm voice that calmed her down just a little bit. "Just like you always do."

"I know...I just want to make sure I don't look bad for him..."

Just as she was about to trigger the door controls to enter the room, the doors opened on their own. From behind the door, a cloaked figure nearly walked right into Milah. "Oh, sorry..." he said as he held her shoulders so she did not fall over. At the very sight of the man, Milah's heart fluttered inside her chest. This was the one person she had been nervous about meeting and made sure she looked good enough for. The Hunter Vanguard, Cayde-6.

His metallic blue skin shone in the light above them, his dark hood resting just behind the horn protruding from his forehead. His bright, light blue eyes looked at her and Milah could not help but smile. "You okay?" he asked. The gaps in his cheeks and jaw were illuminated orange with each syllable he spoke, an aspect that all Exo share with each other, much like Awoken all have a skin tone in a shade of blue and glowing eyes.

"H-hey Cayde!" Milah said as she righted herself, "Yeah, yeah I'm fine...Uh, how are you?" _Smooth move..._

"I'm fine, but I gotta go. See ya." He patted her shoulder and brushed past her and managed to get a few feet away from her before she remembered why she needed to talk to him in the first place.

"Oh, Cayde! I got your reports from the Highlands for you!" She quickly ran up to him and brandished a tablet with the report for him. He spun around and looked it over before nodding.

"Oh yeah! Zavala was asking me about that last week," he said with a nod.

The Awoken woman paused and blinked a few times, trying to process this new information. "But you just gave me that mission two days ago..."

"Hey! Speaking of Zavala..." Cayde began to change the subject as he slipped the report behind his back. "He was looking for someone to help out in the EDZ, apparently one of his Titans found something strange and was requesting some support. I told him I'd send my best Hunter to assist." He then placed his hand on Milah's shoulder and she was filled with so much pride that her face hurt from the smile. "But, I'm stuck in this tower, so you'll have to do. I gotta go see a guy about something. Good luck!"

He patted her shoulder and left without another word. Milah just stared out at his back as he stormed up the stairs on the far side of the room two at a time, just to create as much space between himself and Commander Zavala, most likely because they had another argument. Milah sighed and slumped slightly, this was how she got stuck with the scout report before, lost in his glowing eyes and just going with whatever he asked of her.

From the side, Lavander floated into view before her and looked at his Guardian and to her crush. "Why do you like him, again?"

"It's his voice, mostly..." Milah groaned before turning to enter the Vanguard chambers.

Inside was a large room with a massive window that spanned the entire wall across from her. In the middle of the room was a large wooden table, scattered with everything from maps, tomes and reports from every official inside the City. Along the sides, people and Frames were busy doing their jobs as Milah descended the small set of stairs to the table and towards the man standing at the end of it.

Walking past Cayde-6's station at the table, she saw maps made of paper as well as holographic schematics for facilities worlds away. Continuing on, she approached the lone person standing at the far end of the table. Hunched over the table, the Vanguard Commander, Zavala, was looking over some reports. His bald head showed off more of his light blue skin. His large bulky armour was painted in white and red with his Titan Mark hanging off his waist.

When Milah stood near him, he stood up from his reports and looked her over. The Titan Vanguard was an intimidating man, having a stern face with defined features that made him look like he does not know how to smile. All that time with Cayde-6 probably killed any fun in him. He slipped his hands behind his back and nodded to her. "Guardian, what can I do for you?" he asked politely, ever the professional.

"Cayde said that you were looking for a Hunter, sir?" she said as she gave a more professional tone to her voice to match his.

The commander simply blinked and raised his eyebrow in surprise. "I didn't expect Cayde to find his best Hunter so quickly after I asked him."

"Milah was the first person he ran into..." Lav chimed in hovering just above her shoulder. Milah shot her ghost a dirty look as the Vanguard Commander simply sighed and shook his head.

"Regardless of how you ended up here, the task remains the same," Zavala began as he shook off his disappointment of the Hunter Vanguard and began his speech. "A Titan on patrol found something suspicious on the outskirts of the EDZ. We don't know what the Fallen are planning, but without knowing what we're walking into, I don't feel confident in sending a full strike team. Your task is to go there, find out what their planning, then return safely. Any questions?"

When Milah did not answer, the Commander nodded, "I'll send the coordinates to your Ghost, good luck." With that, the Awoken Hunter turned away from Commander Zavala and walked out of the Vanguard's room and back out to the Tower Watch. Outside in the sun, she breathed a deep breath and nodded. Getting a few items from her vault, she held her Ghost in the palm of her hand and smiled softly at him.

"Ready?"

With a nod, Lav summoned their ship and used the transmat to put them both inside of it before they flew away from the Last City and towards their mission.

When Milah arrived at the coordinates, she was greeted with the decaying ruins of what was once a golden age metropolis. Massive skyscrapers were hollowed out or toppled over, as nature had had centuries to reclaim what was taken from it. Despite the amber glow of the setting sun, everything still felt bland and muted. After quickly looking around her, Milah began to walk towards the person who had requested back up in the first place.

Lav pointed her in the right direction, meaning up an ancient fire escape to the roof of an old apartment building. When she arrived there, she was met with a lone figure standing at the edge looking down. Large, bulky armour meant he was a Titan. A large auto-rifle was in their hands with a shotgun hanging over their shoulder. Their armour was painted with bright silver and grey in a camo pattern, meaning they would stand out in any setting; opposite from Milah's own colour selection to blend in with the greens of the area.

For Titans, their mark is as much as a part of them as their name. The Titan that stood before her wore a mark that was made up of four thick stripes of cloth of different lengths. On the longest one, a series of diamonds that held a hexagon with an 'X' running through the middle. She did not know what order this Titan was from, but she knew they held their orders dear.

Hovering over his shoulder was his Ghost, as Ghosts often do. As she approached, the Titan's Ghost turned at looked at her. "About time..." the female voice came from the Ghost. It was black with small bumps for reinforcement on its many limbs coming from the centre eye. The Ghost Shell was a deep black with crimson tips. At her voice, the Titan turned and took a few steps towards her.

"Here I was wondering if I had to go in and do this on my own," the Titan said proudly. From the voice coming from the helmet, Milah could tell it was a male, and from the way he sounded, probably an Exo. "What do you know so far?"

"Nothing much, you called for back-up and now here I am..." the Hunter replied as she stood at the edge and peered out over the area.

"Yeah well. Morrigan got all worried about me being out here for so long on my own... If I didn't send the report, she said she wouldn't stop bothering me..." At the sound of his statement, his Ghost, Morrigan, bashed into his helmet. The Titan took it in stride as he stood on the lip of the roof of the building and looked over at Milah once more, "Shall we?" He then took a step off the roof and dropped to the ground below.

Milah just shook her head with a sigh as she slipped her scout rifle onto her back, "Titans..."

Taking a less direct path down to the ground, Milah jumped down and grabbed onto an old street light. Her momentum was transferred as she spun a few times around it before releasing her grip and landing gracefully on her feet. Quickly catching up to the Titan, Milah pulled her scout rifle back out and walked next to him as they walked towards a large intersection with long-dead traffic lights hanging from poles.

Approaching the corner of a building, the Titan placed his back against the old brick and peeked around the corner. "There they are, take a look..." Milah slipped past him and looked down the street where a large building with stairs leading downwards was sitting between two large towers. There were a number of Fallen watching the opening while a few of the lower standing Fallen were pushing a large container filled with dirt down a set of tracks further down the road.

The Fallen, or Eliksni, depending on who you asked, were a plague on Earth. They were large and stood on two legs, but that was where the similarities ended. They had four arms on their torsos, four eyes that glowed brightly, and they each depended on something called Ether to survive. They scavaged everything and anything they could get their hands on. Any piece of tech, no matter how small; they would add it to their own armoury somehow.

The smaller ones, Dregs, made up the main ground forces for the Fallen, they also held the lowest rank. They had their bottom set of arms cut off and capped to prevent them from growing back. A few taller Fallen were with the Dregs. Vandals were the next ones up on the food chain. They were larger and stronger than Dregs, having both sets of arms, and often carried a variety of weapons into battle. Each of them wore a red banner, marking them from the House of Devils.

"What are they doing?" Milah asked as she looked down the scope and watched four Dregs push a makeshift cart filled with dirt down a track and away from the tunnel entrance.

"Not sure, but if the Fallen are planning things, it can't be good..." the Titan said as he checked his auto rifle over one last time before the soft click of the safety coming off echoed through her helmet. "Shall we go and ask?" Before she could say anything, the Titan jumped from around the corner and began to charge towards them. Milah chased after him and quickly aimed and fired a few shots into the Fallen forces, taking own three Dregs and injuring a Vandal to give the Titan enough time to come in close with his auto rifle.

The two Guardians made quick work of the confused Fallen, who never stood a chance. Looking at the dead, they reloaded their weapons before turning to the cave entrance. They walked down the cracked and chipped steps, their weapons aimed out in front of them for any sign of Fallen movement. Reaching the main platform of what was once a Golden Age train station, they saw it as a staging area for something.

Tracks that lead into several different tunnels were all filled with different equipment or filled with earth and rocks. "It looks like their digging for something..." Lav said as he appeared in front of her and began to examine the carts filled with materials.

"But I'm not detecting any seismic activity." Morrigan chimed in as her Titan looked down the tunnels before deciding on one in particular.

"This one has a lot of cables going down it," was his only reason. Milah did not have a better idea, so she followed him down the tunnel. Walking down the darkened tunnel, their Ghosts were hovering above their shoulders shining a light to see where they were going. Eventually, they reached a split in the tracks. Following the Golden Age tunnel would probably lead to another station.

Next to them, however, was a large hole that was carved into the tunnel wall. The tracks were lifted and bent, following the large cables down the second path. Slowly, they made their way, following the cables while avoiding stepping on them. The hum of heavy machines began to filter into her helmet as a light began to filter from the end of the passage.

When they arrived, they were met with a massive circular passageway that led further down the way. Lights and other Fallen scraps of tech filled the room, as well as several other Fallen Dregs and Vandals. A loud roar came from a Fallen Captain, who rallied his soldiers to his side to fight back the intruders. Larger than Vandals, they were the commanders of the armies, wielding blades and a high powered weapon, they had a personal shield and were very dangerous when met one on one.

Quickly diving into cover, shots filled the air as they began to fight back. Crouching behind a crate, Milah fired off rounds from her scout rifle as the enemy approached. A sense of satisfaction overcame her when she managed to hit the Ether intake on one of the Dregs, resulting in the Ether rapidly draining from its body and it dropping to the ground in a lifeless heap; the white gas exiting its face, like a spirit leaving its body.

Suddenly, the Captain began to rush at them. Reaching over her shoulder, she grabbed the stock of her fusion rifle and pulled it to bear as the Titan jumped over his cover and rushed down the remaining Dregs and Vandals. As the Captain approached her, firing its weapon, Milah pulled the trigger and held it down. She felt the hum of Arc energy fill the weapon as it powered up. Ducking just out of the way, the weapon fired, launching a salvo of blue beams directly into the Fallen Captain.

Its shield burst from the power and it was pushed back by the force. Giving it no chance to get its bearings, Milah charged another shot and fired into it again. Its skin began to burn and fall apart as she stepped on its chest and aimed straight for its head. It roared at her in defiance as she took careful aim and fired her fusion rifle one last time into its face, destroying its head.

The Ether leeched out of its body as it laid there limp under her foot. Stepping off its corpse, she saw the Titan use the butt of his rifle to knock the last Vandal down and used his fist destroy its face, leaving it also limp on the ground. After making sure all the Fallen were dead, Milah swapped the batteries for her fusion rifle before shouldering it once more. "These Fallen are a long way away from their territory back in the Cosmodrome. What are they doing all the way out here?"

"Whatever it is," Morrigan answered Lav, "it can't be good."

With no more Fallen in their way, they followed the large power cables to where they led; a massive drill that was parked several kilometres from where they started. Making quick work of the Fallen that were operating the large digging machine, the Guardians and their Ghosts began to take a closer look at the machine. One thing Milah did notice was that the drill was moving extremely slowly. Large piles of dirt and rock were collecting slowly on either side of the drill, solving the mystery of the carts of dirt.

"That's why the Ghosts weren't picking up anything. The drill is moving so slow that it doesn't make enough vibrations. Shaxx's motivational speeches probably shake the ground more than this thing right now..." the Titan said as he walked up and placed a hand on the back of the drill, letting the spinning metal slide against his fingers. "Which way is this thing pointed?" he turned around and asked his Ghost.

His Ghost was silent for a few moments before she spoke. "It's pointed right for the City. However, at the current rate, it would take years before it got anywhere close. But if they were patient and prepared enough forces and explosives, they could pop out in the middle of the City without anyone knowing..."

"That's...not good." Lav read her mind as he also began to look at the drill.

"So, whoever is leading this band of Devils is one smart cookie..." The Titan's words were cut off when a loud screeching echoed through the tunnels. An alarm echoed through the area and the cries of the Fallen followed after it. "Well, that sounds like fun."

"We need to leave, now!"

As one, the Ghosts disappeared so they were not targeted by gunfire as the Titan followed Milah back down the path they took to get there. Dodging weapon fire from Fallen that were coming out of small holes and off branching tunnels, they were doing their best to run and gun to safety. A huge wave of Fallen that came off a large, branching path forced them to stop and take cover, firing from behind the crates the Fallen had left and doing their best to not die.

Suddenly the ground shook in a familiar pattern. From behind her, Milah saw a large Fallen walker tank making its way towards her; looking like some sort of spider made of nightmares and metal. There was nowhere to go, since she was sandwiched between a horde of Fallen and a spider tank. The sound of its main cannon powering up filled the air as the red targeting line landed on her. Gritting her teeth, she closed her eyes and held her breath and waited for the end to come.

She flinched when the tank round left the cannon, but it never reached them. The sound of an explosion right in front of her made her open her eyes to see what had happened. Her vision was filled with purple as a large dome protected her and the Titan from the walker tank and from the Fallen guarding the entrance. Looking up in front of her, the Titan was standing with his arms outstretched from generating the barrier using Void energy.

Lowering his arms, he looked back at her and held his hand to help her up. "If you must run, run no further than me. If you must hide, hide behind me. If you need a place to rest, lean on me. For I will not run, I will not hide, and I will not rest; for I am a wall, and will stand against the darkness."

Milah stared at him and shook her head, "You are by far, the strangest Titan I've ever met." She grasped his hand and he pulled her to her feet with ease.

"Yeah well, who wants to be normal..."

"How long will this last?" She asked as she reloaded her rifle.

"The Ward of Dawn will last only a few more seconds. Got a plan to get out of here?"

Milah just smiled from under her helmet. She reached to her chest and pulled a large combat knife from its sheath. She channelled Arc energy into her body and dashed out of the protective bubble and towards the Fallen that stopped them previously. Her whole body glowed blue as she bobbed and weaved between the Fallen, her blade slipping in and out of faces and necks, killing everything that stood in her path.

She danced among the ranks of Fallen, killing indiscriminately until the way was clear. The energy left her body and she sprinted down the tunnel towards the surface, the Titan hot on her heels. More and more Fallen were coming out from every hidden tunnel they made down there. Racing up the steps, they looked back to see an army rushing to catch them. From the side of her vision, she saw as the Titan pulled out a massive rocket launcher and took aim.

Milah watched as the rocket streaked across the street and into the tunnel, sending debris and bodies in every direction. He quickly reloaded as she aimed at the stairs. When no more Fallen came out, she let out the breath she had been holding in. "Well..." the Titan began as he lowered the rocket launcher, "That was fun." Milah shook her head as she shouldered her rifle and walked away from him.

Arriving back at the Tower in the Last City, Milah lowered her hood and slipped her helmet off her head. The sound of heavy armour pulled her attention as the Titan walked up and pulled his helmet off his own head. The Exo's skin was a dark orange with two thick blue bars going down the middle of his face. On his forehead was a metallic aqua plate that shaded his glowing cobalt eyes. "Nice work out there," he said as he approached her.

She nodded and smiled softly at him, "Same to you, for a Titan." He let out a 'ha' as he began to head towards where Commander Zavala was.

"What's your name, by the way?" he asked as they casually walked towards the Hall of Guardians.

"Milah."

"Eclipse-3." He held his hand out and she took it with a firm shake. "That's quite the firm handshake you got, for a Hunter." She gave him a cheeky smirk as they continued their way to give their report, and to prepare for whatever comes next.

 **A/N: Like I said before, I don't usually write Destiny fics, but I really do like the game and the universe it has created. Over the years, my and my friends have all kinda brought life to our characters and I thought it would fun to write about them.**

 **Big thanks to StreetAngelJ for editing this chapter!**

 **If you enjoyed, leave a favourite! If people like it, I'll continue it! If you already have, leave a comment! I love reading them and I love replying to them. This story is also posted on AO3 under the same name. I also have a Tumblr (AngryFaceWritings) Come say hi! If you enjoyed my writing and are a fan of RWBY, come check out my other work!**

 **And thank you for taking time out of your busy day to read my slice of Space Magic!**


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